Junior Kudu, who is accused along with others of conspiring to rob 247 Kettles in Richmond, London, in May last year, which ‘directly resulted’ in the suicide of manager Oliver White
A man accused of robbing £1.38million worth of watches from a jewellery store told a court the whole thing was “staged” and those involved “consented” – including a manager who was tied up and later took his own life.
Junior Kudu and Mannix Pedro are charged with conspiring with others to carry out a robbery at the 247 Kettles store in Richmond, London, where 70 luxury watches were stolen. The store’s manager Oliver White, 27, died by suicide the following day “as a direct result”, jurors previously heard.
Two other men named as Michael Ashman and Kyle Bowrage were also allegedly involved in the robbery on May 25 last year, but remain at large having fled abroad. Kunu, 30, told Woolwich crown court on Wednesday that the entire incident was not a proper robbery, but had been “staged” as part of an apparent “insurance scam”.
He repeatedly insisted: “This was not a robbery, this was staged,” and said he was told he would be paid £5,000 for putting watches into a bag. “I knew that I was going to take part in a staged robbery where everyone was consenting,” Kunu said. “I knew that the person in the shop was going to comply. I knew that I was going to put watches in the bag and I had to do nothing else.”
Kunu claimed Kyle Bowrage had told him what was going to happen and that it all went according to plan. “He told me that Oliver White was going to comply, he complied,” he said.
“He told me that police was not going to get called, they didn’t get called. He told me that he (Mr White) wasn’t going to press the panic button or anything and he didn’t.
“At one point Bowrage was on one side and Oliver White was by himself. If this was a real-life robbery he would have pressed the panic button, he would have screamed or kicked up a fuss. Everything Kyle Bowrage told me happened to the exact T.”
He said “it would have been different” if Mr White had not consented. “He would have pressed the panic button,” Kunu told the court. “We walked out of that place, we didn’t run. There wasn’t a car outside. We walked to where the car was… if this was a robbery the car would have been outside, we would have run out. This was, to my belief, an insurance scam. But I didn’t know that.”
Jurors previously heard that Mr White was put in a headlock and tied up while the watches were stolen. Kunu said the actions, including using cable ties on Mr White, was part of “the role play” to “make the whole thing look real”.
“It was a staged robbery so I believed that it was consented,” Kunu said. “If I actually believed that this was a robbery I would have never been there. If I actually believed that he (Mr White) was uncomfortable or he looked like he was genuinely really struggling, this would have been completely different.”
The court heard that Kunu had received a call from a “Mr X” asking him to be involved in the “staged robbery”. Kunu however refused to name the caller out of concern for his and his family’s safety. He told the jury he was chosen for the “scam” because he’d previously mentioned to Mr X about his financial struggles.
“He knew that I needed money and I feel like he knew that I was just… I’m naive,” he said. “He knew that I was naive. He said I was going to partake in staged robbery and all I had to do was put watches in a bag. I asked him a number of questions and he just said everyone was consenting to the staged robbery, that nothing bad was going to happen.”
He accepted he was – “at most” – a part of a “conspiracy to steal”, but later agreed with the prosecution suggestion that the incident was “always going to involve violence or the threat of violence potentially”, answering: “I guess so.”
He denied making his explanations up.
Connor Thornton, the store’s co-owner, denied believing the incident was an “inside job” when he gave evidence last week, while Mr White’s mother, Amy Keane, described him as a “really hardworking young man” who was “devastated by the robbery”.
The court previously heard that Mr White tried to transfer £14,000 of his own savings to his bosses after the robbery. It was also heard how 247 Kettles had CCTV, panic buttons and magnetic locking doors for security measures as well as a smoke system, and mainly sold “high-end” Rolex models ranging from £3,000 to £70,000.
The prosecution alleges the defendants played different roles in the plot, with Kunu having entered the premises to carry out the robbery, while Pedro, 37, who did not attend the shop on May 25, was “closely involved in the planning and execution”. Pedro, of Cobham, Surrey, and Kunu, of Mitcham, south-west London, deny the charges.
None of the watches have been recovered, the court has heard. The trial continues.
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